When The Teacher Is The School Bully

Anti-bullying laws may now have a significant impact on what is considered to be “emotional abuse” in schools. Recently, the Connecticut Supreme Court concluded that a teacher’s bullying behavior toward a student met the legal definition of emotional abuse. Nicholas Frank v. Department of Children and Families, SC 18980, July 8, 2014. In this case, a sixth grade teacher, Nicholas Frank, had been placed on the central registry of abuse and neglect after the Department of Children and Families [“DCF”] found that he had emotionally abused one of his students. The abuse came in the form of targeting an overweight boy in his class by repeatedly calling him demeaning and embarrassing names — such as “pregnant,” “birthing mother,” “cheeks,” “fish out of water,” — painfully pinching the student’s cheeks, and effectively encouraging other students in the class to join in. As a result, the student began to suffer from anxiety, bedwetting, fear of school and reduced academic performance. The teacher’s primary defense was that his comments were jokes, said in an effort to keep a light atmosphere in the classroom and could not be considered to be abuse as that term was too vague to apply to his situation.

This case had started as an appeal of a DCF hearing officer’s decision to keep the teacher’s name on the registry of abuse and neglect. The Court concluded that the hearing officer’s decision was based upon substantial evidence, and thus worthy of deference by the Court, and that the abuse and neglect law as applied to this teacher was not unconstitutionally vague. In other words, the teacher had fair notice that his behavior fell within the statutory definition of abuse. Such notice came mostly from DCF policy, but also, quite notably, from the anti-bullying and safe school climate law.

In Connecticut, bullying policies and safe school climate plans do not apply to teacher conduct toward students. Acknowledging this, the Court stated that “[a]lthough the statute is expressly directed at student conduct intended to cause harm, it directs teachers to take an active role in preventing and responding to bullying.” The Court went on to note that teachers play a vital role in minimizing, if not eliminating bullying among students. Therefore, the anti-bullying law is further proof that this teacher should have known that his behavior was abusive.

What does this case mean for schools and for teachers?

- Bullying by school staff is emotional abuse and neglect. This case serves as a clear reminder and example that the kind of behavior that we call “bullying” when it occurs between students can qualify as “emotional abuse and neglect” when a teacher is the perpetrator. To be clear, the behavior in this case was more than mere name-calling. The teacher not only made frequent degrading comments referencing the student’s weight, but also physically pinched his cheeks and continued to engage in this conduct despite the visibly and seriously negative effect on the student and the parent’s complaints, creating an environment where the other students perpetuated the abuse.

- Firm legal ground to terminate. In addition to DCF involvement, this teacher had been investigated by the school district and suspended. Being placed on the DCF registry typically results in the revocation of a teacher’s certification by the state and consequently the inability to teach in any public school. In essence, this decision by Connecticut’s highest court provides school districts with a firm legal basis to impose the strongest of sanctions—termination of employment — in response to such misconduct.

- Highlights need for administrators to respond quickly to such claims. This case is another reminder that school administrators need to investigate complaints of emotional abuse by teachers in a timely and effective manner, keeping in mind that as mandated reporters, they may also need to report such allegations to DCF. Failure to do so that results in significant harm to a student could become a liability.

DISCLAIMER: Because of the generality of this update, the information provided herein may not be applicable in all situations and should not be acted upon without specific legal advice based on particular situations.

"My best business intelligence, in one easy email…"

*By using the service, you signify your acceptance of JD Supra's Privacy Policy.

Privacy Policy (Updated: October 8, 2015):

hide

JD Supra provides users with access to its legal industry publishing services (the "Service") through its website (the "Website") as well as through other sources. Our policies with regard to data collection and use of personal information of users of the Service, regardless of the manner in which users access the Service, and visitors to the Website are set forth in this statement ("Policy"). By using the Service, you signify your acceptance of this Policy.

The information and data collected is used to authenticate users and to send notifications relating to the Service, including email alerts to which users have subscribed; to manage the Service and Website, to improve the Service and to customize the user's experience. This information is also provided to the authors of the content to give them insight into their readership and help them to improve their content, so that it is most useful for our users.

JD Supra does not sell, rent or otherwise provide your details to third parties, other than to the authors of the content on JD Supra.

If you prefer not to enable cookies, you may change your browser settings to disable cookies; however, please note that rejecting cookies while visiting the Website may result in certain parts of the Website not operating correctly or as efficiently as if cookies were allowed.

Email Choice/Opt-out

Users who opt in to receive emails may choose to no longer receive e-mail updates and newsletters by selecting the "opt-out of future email" option in the email they receive from JD Supra or in their JD Supra account management screen.

Security

JD Supra takes reasonable precautions to insure that user information is kept private. We restrict access to user information to those individuals who reasonably need access to perform their job functions, such as our third party email service, customer service personnel and technical staff. However, please note that no method of transmitting or storing data is completely secure and we cannot guarantee the security of user information. Unauthorized entry or use, hardware or software failure, and other factors may compromise the security of user information at any time.

If you have reason to believe that your interaction with us is no longer secure, you must immediately notify us of the problem by contacting us at info@jdsupra.com. In the unlikely event that we believe that the security of your user information in our possession or control may have been compromised, we may seek to notify you of that development and, if so, will endeavor to do so as promptly as practicable under the circumstances.

Sharing and Disclosure of Information JD Supra Collects

Except as otherwise described in this privacy statement, JD Supra will not disclose personal information to any third party unless we believe that disclosure is necessary to: (1) comply with applicable laws; (2) respond to governmental inquiries or requests; (3) comply with valid legal process; (4) protect the rights, privacy, safety or property of JD Supra, users of the Service, Website visitors or the public; (5) permit us to pursue available remedies or limit the damages that we may sustain; and (6) enforce our Terms & Conditions of Use.

In the event there is a change in the corporate structure of JD Supra such as, but not limited to, merger, consolidation, sale, liquidation or transfer of substantial assets, JD Supra may, in its sole discretion, transfer, sell or assign information collected on and through the Service to one or more affiliated or unaffiliated third parties.

Links to Other Websites

This Website and the Service may contain links to other websites. The operator of such other websites may collect information about you, including through cookies or other technologies. If you are using the Service through the Website and link to another site, you will leave the Website and this Policy will not apply to your use of and activity on those other sites. We encourage you to read the legal notices posted on those sites, including their privacy policies. We shall have no responsibility or liability for your visitation to, and the data collection and use practices of, such other sites. This Policy applies solely to the information collected in connection with your use of this Website and does not apply to any practices conducted offline or in connection with any other websites.

Changes in Our Privacy Policy

We reserve the right to change this Policy at any time. Please refer to the date at the top of this page to determine when this Policy was last revised. Any changes to our privacy policy will become effective upon posting of the revised policy on the Website. By continuing to use the Service or Website following such changes, you will be deemed to have agreed to such changes. If you do not agree with the terms of this Policy, as it may be amended from time to time, in whole or part, please do not continue using the Service or the Website.

Contacting JD Supra

If you have any questions about this privacy statement, the practices of this site, your dealings with this Web site, or if you would like to change any of the information you have provided to us, please contact us at: info@jdsupra.com.

- hide

*With LinkedIn, you don't need to create a separate login to manage your free JD Supra account, and we can make suggestions based on your needs and interests. We will not post anything on LinkedIn in your name. Or, sign up using your email address.